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| Eleanor of Aquitaine Queen of England |
(1122-1204)
Reine de France
Queen of England
Duchesse d 'Aquitaine.
Daughter of: Guillaume X d'Aquitaine & Aenor de Chatellerault.
Eleanor's physical appearance & personal qualities.
"Schama writes, 'Barely eight weeks after Eleanor's divorce in May 1152, Henry stood at the altar beside this considerably older woman whom all contemporary accounts describe as a dark-eyed beauty, disconcertingly articulate, strong-minded and even jocular and not at all the modestly veiled damsel in the tower.' For her part, Eleanor was willing to look beyond her groom's stocky frame, barrel chest and boyish freckles to his arrogant self-confidence and royal objectives. . . ." (British Heritage)
"At the back of his mind may have lurked another anxiety: Eleanor, exceptionally beautiful at fifteen, had matured into a saucy, hot-blooded damsel, and perhaps he feared that, improperly chaperoned, she might grant excessive courtesies to some ardent knight. All contemporary accounts of Eleanor, even when she had grown old, emphasized a radiant loveliness that went far beyond the ordinary . . . . (Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Biography)
Eleanor d'Aquitaine
Eleanor of Aquitaine's lovers were:
"Plaidy's presentation of Eleanor adheres to the popular image of the Queen that had become established in the nineteenth century: romantic, cultured, adulterous, irresponsible in youth but becoming an elder stateswoman later in life. According to the publisher's introduction, 'Eleanor grows into a romantic and beautiful queen, but she has inherited the will of a king, and is determined to rule Aquitaine using her husband's power as King of France. Her resolved knows no limit and, in the years to follow she was to become one of history's most scandalous queens.' Plaidy includes many of the incidents that formed the image of the frivolous young queen of France -- the crusading escapades of Eleanor and her ladies, her affair with Raymond of Antioch and a subsequent affair with Geoffrey of Anjou. Rosamond's bower is included in the story, but not her murder at Eleanor's hands. Plaidy's later novel The Courts of Love features, as the title implies, one of the most enduring elements of the Eleanor myths, the claim that she held actual Courts of Love at Poitiers. Eleanor rides to the crusade at the head of her ladies (although in Plaidy's telling they do not dress up as Amazons). Her love affair with Raymond of Antioch is included, as is an unconsummated love for her brother-in-law (Raoul of Vermandois). Plaidy's portrayal of Eleanor's two husbands reflects the standard popular dichotomy between a weak, ineffectual Louis ('there was something rather timid about him') and a tempestuous and philandering Henry." (Inventing Eleanor: The Medieval and Post-Medieval Image of Eleanor of Aquitaine: 136)
"Following the dissolution of her marriage, Eleanor regained possession of Aquitaine and Poitou. This wealth combined with her loveliness attracted suitors well before the annulment was final, one of whom was Henry of Anjou (a domain bordering Poitou), soon be known as Plantagenet. Most historians agree that Eleanor and Geoffrey of Anjou, Henry's father, were sexually intimate before she met Henry. Schama notes, 'It was rumored that Geoffrey of Anjou had personally verified Eleanor's appetite for passion before recommending her to his son.' Be that as it may, 30-year-old Eleanor and 18-year-old Henry felt passionately attracted to one another. Henry's unsurpassed physical courage and keen political acumen resonated with Eleanor's ambition for power." (British Heritage)
"A greater threat to Eleanor's political future and personal reputation was the allegation that before her second marriage she had been intimate with Henry II's father, Count Geoffrey of Anjou. As Margaret Pappano notes in this volyme, that liaison would have made Eleanor's marriage to Henry void in canon law, their children bastards and, as the issue of incest, monstrous as well (one point on which Henry II might ultimately have agreed). But Eleanor's reputed affair with Count Geoffrey is, again, first noted not in French sources but in later, if still contemporary, works by the British writers Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) and Walter Map. This implies that like William of Newburgh's tale of Eleanor's sexual derision of Louis VII, rumors of her liaison with Geoffrey of Anjou were part of English inheritances' anti-Angevin sentiments, as noted above, and that they circulated to cloud the legitimacy of her children with Henry and the Angevin court's moral authority. Neither the allegations of Eleanor's misconduct at Antioch nor those of her affair with Geoffrey will bear close scrutiny, but in the minds of contemporaries and later readers, the two tales could well have reinforced each other to create the picture of an incestuously faithless wife." (Eleanor of Aquitaine: Lord and Lady: 270)
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| Geoffrey V of Anjou @Wikimedia |
1) Geoffroi V d'Anjou (1113-1151)
Comte d'Anjou, Touraine & Maine 1129
Duc de Normandy 1144
Duc de Normandy 1144
Son of: Foulques V d'Anjou & Eremburga de La Fleche, Comtesse de Maine & Dame de Chateau-du-Loir, daughter of Helias I du Maine.
Husband of: Empress Matilda, mar 1128, daughter of Emperor Heinrich I & widow of Emperor Heinrich V.
Husband of: Empress Matilda, mar 1128, daughter of Emperor Heinrich I & widow of Emperor Heinrich V.
" . . . On many occasions Eleanor had heard her father speak of Geoffrey Plantagenet, although not always in complimentary terms. Geoffrey, she knew, was extraordinarily good looking. Geoffrey le Bel, people called him, 'Geoffrey the Handsome.' Energetic and dashing, he had a certain flair that lesser lords tried to emulate, although probably no one else could have gotten away with wearing in his cap a sprig of planta genesta, the common broom plant. Geoffrey had married well, and even though he detested his cold, haughty wife, Matilda was nonetheless the daughter of King Henry of England, and it was through her that he was able to claim Normandy. . . ." (Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Biography)
"Following the dissolution of her marriage, Eleanor regained possession of Aquitaine and Poitou. This wealth combined with her loveliness attracted suitors well before the annulment was final, one of whom was Henry of Anjou (a domain bordering Poitou), soon be known as Plantagenet. Most historians agree that Eleanor and Geoffrey of Anjou, Henry's father, were sexually intimate before she met Henry. Schama notes, 'It was rumored that Geoffrey of Anjou had personally verified Eleanor's appetite for passion before recommending her to his son.' Be that as it may, 30-year-old Eleanor and 18-year-old Henry felt passionately attracted to one another. Henry's unsurpassed physical courage and keen political acumen resonated with Eleanor's ambition for power." (British Heritage)
"A greater threat to Eleanor's political future and personal reputation was the allegation that before her second marriage she had been intimate with Henry II's father, Count Geoffrey of Anjou. As Margaret Pappano notes in this volyme, that liaison would have made Eleanor's marriage to Henry void in canon law, their children bastards and, as the issue of incest, monstrous as well (one point on which Henry II might ultimately have agreed). But Eleanor's reputed affair with Count Geoffrey is, again, first noted not in French sources but in later, if still contemporary, works by the British writers Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) and Walter Map. This implies that like William of Newburgh's tale of Eleanor's sexual derision of Louis VII, rumors of her liaison with Geoffrey of Anjou were part of English inheritances' anti-Angevin sentiments, as noted above, and that they circulated to cloud the legitimacy of her children with Henry and the Angevin court's moral authority. Neither the allegations of Eleanor's misconduct at Antioch nor those of her affair with Geoffrey will bear close scrutiny, but in the minds of contemporaries and later readers, the two tales could well have reinforced each other to create the picture of an incestuously faithless wife." (Eleanor of Aquitaine: Lord and Lady: 270)
Physical appearance & personal qualities.
"The chronicler John of Marmoutier describes Geoffrey as handsome, red haired, jovial, and a great warrior; however, Ralph of Diceto stated his charms were shallow and concealed a cold and selfish character. The year after the marriage of Geoffrey and Matilda, Fulk of Anjou left to marry Melisende, heiress of Baldwin II of Jerusalem, leaving Geoffrey to succeed as count of Anjou." (English Monarchs)
"The chronicler John of Marmoutier describes Geoffrey as handsome, red haired, jovial, and a great warrior; however, Ralph of Diceto stated his charms were shallow and concealed a cold and selfish character. The year after the marriage of Geoffrey and Matilda, Fulk of Anjou left to marry Melisende, heiress of Baldwin II of Jerusalem, leaving Geoffrey to succeed as count of Anjou." (English Monarchs)
" . . . In his late thirties, he was as striking figure, one of the handsomest, most lettered, and most courtly men of his generation, and he was a very hardy knight. . . ." (Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Four Kings: 75)
" . . . A twelfth-century biographer of Count Geoffrey V of Anjou described him as 'a lover of law, a guardian of peace, a conqueror of his enemies, and helper of the oppressed,' whose only real problem was not keeping a tight enough rein on the apparently quite serious abuses of his agents, who were here blamed for any shortcomings in comital rule. . . ." (Strong of Body, Brave and Noble: Chivalry and Society in Medieval France: 10)
" . . . A twelfth-century biographer of Count Geoffrey V of Anjou described him as 'a lover of law, a guardian of peace, a conqueror of his enemies, and helper of the oppressed,' whose only real problem was not keeping a tight enough rein on the apparently quite serious abuses of his agents, who were here blamed for any shortcomings in comital rule. . . ." (Strong of Body, Brave and Noble: Chivalry and Society in Medieval France: 10)
"Angevin sources saw him as a handsome youth and a powerful knight, a most noble count, strong in arms, a philosopher in his knowledge." (The Ideals and Practice of Medieval Knighthood III: 22)
"John's intention is to present Geoffrey V as a model for princes and for men. He says that others have travelled far to describe event in remote places, but he will describe only what is close to him: 'the domestic deeds of an exceptional man', who had adorned the world above all others, like a shining mirror of virtue'. John means to use Geoffrey's example to stimulate others to show courage, and thus he has 'not kept . . ." (The Ideals and Practice of Medieval Knighthood III: 23)
"John's intention is to present Geoffrey V as a model for princes and for men. He says that others have travelled far to describe event in remote places, but he will describe only what is close to him: 'the domestic deeds of an exceptional man', who had adorned the world above all others, like a shining mirror of virtue'. John means to use Geoffrey's example to stimulate others to show courage, and thus he has 'not kept . . ." (The Ideals and Practice of Medieval Knighthood III: 23)
Geoffroi & Matilda's marriage & family.
"At the age of fifteen he was married to Matilda, the daughter of Henry I and and widow of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor. The pair never cared for each other, theirs was a union of convenience. Henry I chose Geoffrey to sire his grandchildren because his lands were strategically placed on the Norman frontiers and he required the support of Geoffrey's father Fulk, his erstwhile enemy. He accordingly forced his highly reluctant daughter to marry Geoffrey. Their marriage took place on 22nd May 1128, at Le Mans in France. In 1128 Henry I knighted his son-in-law Geoffrey and granted him a badge of gold lions (or leopards ) on a blue background. The couple disliked each other from the outset of their union and neither was of a nature to pretend otherwise and so the scene was set for an extremely stormy marriage. They were, however, finally prevailed upon by the formidable Henry I to do their duty and produce an heir to England. They had three sons, Henry, born 1133, who was to become King of England, Geoffrey, Count of Nantes (1 June 1134 - 26 July 1158.) and William, Count of Poitou (1136-1164)." (English Monarchs)
2) Raymond of Antioch
"At the age of fifteen he was married to Matilda, the daughter of Henry I and and widow of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor. The pair never cared for each other, theirs was a union of convenience. Henry I chose Geoffrey to sire his grandchildren because his lands were strategically placed on the Norman frontiers and he required the support of Geoffrey's father Fulk, his erstwhile enemy. He accordingly forced his highly reluctant daughter to marry Geoffrey. Their marriage took place on 22nd May 1128, at Le Mans in France. In 1128 Henry I knighted his son-in-law Geoffrey and granted him a badge of gold lions (or leopards ) on a blue background. The couple disliked each other from the outset of their union and neither was of a nature to pretend otherwise and so the scene was set for an extremely stormy marriage. They were, however, finally prevailed upon by the formidable Henry I to do their duty and produce an heir to England. They had three sons, Henry, born 1133, who was to become King of England, Geoffrey, Count of Nantes (1 June 1134 - 26 July 1158.) and William, Count of Poitou (1136-1164)." (English Monarchs)
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| Raymond of Antioch |
Incest? with her uncle.
"The tale of Eleanor's incest with her uncle Raymond of Poitiers, prince of Antioch, is one of those familiar stories that assumed recognizable shape only well after the fact, and every later author who reports it seems to know more than any earlier writer has been able to tell us. Whether medieval kings charged their wives with adultery for political or moral reasons, such cases usually ended for the wife in swift repudiation, imprisonment, or repatriation---none of which happened to Eleanor. That she and Louis VII were on bad terms after their 1148 stay at Antioch cannot prove that she had committed adultery. The pope was later able to reconcile them, they had another child whose paternity Louis accepted, and they divorced only four years later, hardly suggesting that her actions at Antioch included adultery, let alone incest. Louis initially agreed to leave Eleanor not for her sexual misdeeds but because of their kinship, and it is unlikely that he had serious doubts about her relations with Raymond. John of Salisbury, the earlier writer to report the events in Antioch, refers to constant conversations between Raymond and Eleanor but, as Archbishop William of Tyre's later account implies, this may reflect no more than Raymond's cultivation of his niece so that she might induce Louis to grant Raymond's request for military aid. Her reunion with her uncle, a reminder of youth and home, perhaps highlighted existing problems in her marriage. As duchess of Aquitaine, moreover, Eleanor likely wished for personal and political reasons to help her uncle and other Poitevins in Antioch, and in such case she would have been angered by Louis's refusal to help Raymond. . . ." (Eleanor of Aquitaine: Lord and Lady: 270)
" . . . She went on a Crusade to the Holy Land with Louis from 1146 to 1149 and was said to have had a passionate affair with her own uncle, Prince Raymond of Antioch. Louis certainly thought so. He abducted her from Raymond's palace and left suddenly for Jerusalem...." (Damsels Not in Distress: The True Story of Women in Medieval Times)
" . . . She went on a Crusade to the Holy Land with Louis from 1146 to 1149 and was said to have had a passionate affair with her own uncle, Prince Raymond of Antioch. Louis certainly thought so. He abducted her from Raymond's palace and left suddenly for Jerusalem...." (Damsels Not in Distress: The True Story of Women in Medieval Times)
"Now aged around thirty-six, the ruler of Antioch, Raymond of Poitiers, was 'taller, better built and more handsome than any man of his time; he surpassed all others as warrior and horseman.' He loved hunting and gambling and possessed extraordinary physical strength, being abe to halt his mighty destrier merely by clenching his thighs, or bend an iron bar with his bare hands. Because of this his friends called him Hercules. . . ." (Eleanor Of Aquitaine: By the Wrath of God, Queen of England: 66)
Handsome, tall, elegant & possessed immense physical strength.
"Raymond took up governing his new principality. He is described by contemporaries as handsome, tall and elegant. He possessed immense physical strength – he was supposed to be able to bend an iron bar with his bare hands and was nicknamed ‘Hercules’. He was skilled in the use of arms and militarily experienced. Although not literate himself, he fostered those who were and enjoyed culture. He liked gambling and was known to be impetuous and hot-tempered, but he also had a high reputation for gallantry and purity of conduct (words in bold for a reason). He attended church regularly and from what can be gathered, was a faithful husband to Constance who in the fullness of time bore him a son Bohemond, and daughters Maria and Philippa." (Elizabeth Chadwick)
Royal husband abducts his wife from her uncle.
" . . . She went on a Crusade to the Holy Land with Louis from 1146 to 1149 and was said to have had a passionate affair with her own uncle, Prince Raymond of Antioch. Louis certainly thought so. He abducted her from Raymond's palace and left suddenly for Jerusalem. . . ." (Damsels Not in Distress: The True Story of Women in Medieval Times)
" . . . She went on a Crusade to the Holy Land with Louis from 1146 to 1149 and was said to have had a passionate affair with her own uncle, Prince Raymond of Antioch. Louis certainly thought so. He abducted her from Raymond's palace and left suddenly for Jerusalem. . . ." (Damsels Not in Distress: The True Story of Women in Medieval Times)
Excessive and scandalous familiarity between uncle and niece.
"In Antioch the presiding spirit was Raymond, Eleanor's uncle, and the cultural affinities of his companions were much closer to Eleanor's native Poitou than to the France of King Louis. Louis himself was shocked by their undedicated way of life, and began to feel that he had been lured to the Holy Land on false pretences. Raymond committed an error of tact by giving military advice to Louis---advice which,had it been followed, would have prevented further disasters. And now there grew up an excessive and even scandalous familiarity between Eleanor and her uncle. Louis was paralysed by wrath and indecision. His attendant clerical eunuch told him that the name of France and his patrimony could only be saved if he took Eleanor away forcibly, and this he did. They embarked from Acre in 1149." (Provence and Pound: 122)
a Turk in Palestine
"It is said that Eleanor, becoming enamoured in Palestine of a young Turk of rare beauty named Sala-Heddin, had forgotten for him her duty to her husband, her country, and her religion. The king, who should have punished her misconduct by shutting her up in a cloister, contented himself with divorcing her and giving her all her inheritance, with which she enriched her second husband. . . ." (Hermeneutic Interpretation of the Origin of the Social State of Man: 329)
3) Saladin of Egypt (1137-1193)
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Saladin of Egypt |
" . . . She is not only generally supposed to have entered into a criminal intrigue with her uncle, but she is accused of the same crime with a young convert from Mahommedism, and also with a Mahometan named Saladin. In regard to the latter, however, it may be necessary to remark, that if the writers who made the charge intended to designate the famous Saladin as the lover of Eleanor, they committed a great error; as it is proved by the Arabic, as well as the European writers, that not the slightest communication could have ever taken place between Saladin and the French princess; and even if it had, it must necessarily have been of a very innocent nature, as Saladin was at that time under eleven years of age. The fact of her incontinence, however, is placed beyond all doubt, by the testimony of William of Tyre, who would not have perpetuated the scandal had not his vast means of communication satisfied him of the truth of the tale." (A History of the Life of Richard Cœur-de-Lion, King of England, Vol 1
: 44)
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| Isabelle of Angouleme Tomb @Fontevraud Abbey |
Wife of:
1. John of England (d.1216) mar 1200
2. Hugh X de Lusignan, Comte de La Marche mar 1220
"She was described to be a stunningly beautiful woman and possessed the Middle Ages' ideal of beauty: blonde hair and blue eyes. She was called "The Fair Maid of Angouleme" and the "Helen of the Middle Ages". Despite her lovely face, Isabella was not a well-liked Queen during and even after her lifetime; she was described to be vain and capricious, and her marriage to the even more unpopular and disliked King John added more fuel to the people's growing hatred and dissatisfaction on his rule." (Arrayed in Gold)
Isabelle's personal & family background.
"Isabella was the only child and heiress of Aymer or Americus, count of Angouleme, surnamed Taillefer. By maternal descent she shared the blood of the Capetian sovereigns, her mother, Alice de Courtenay, being the daughter of Peter de Courtenay, fifth son of Louis VI, king of France. The inheritance of Isabelle was a beautiful province, called the Angoumois, situated in the very heart of the Aquitanian domains; with Perigord on the south, Poitou on the north, Saintonge on the west, and La Limousin on the east. The Angoumois, watered by the clear and sparkling charente.
Isabelle's personal & family background.
"Isabella was the only child and heiress of Aymer or Americus, count of Angouleme, surnamed Taillefer. By maternal descent she shared the blood of the Capetian sovereigns, her mother, Alice de Courtenay, being the daughter of Peter de Courtenay, fifth son of Louis VI, king of France. The inheritance of Isabelle was a beautiful province, called the Angoumois, situated in the very heart of the Aquitanian domains; with Perigord on the south, Poitou on the north, Saintonge on the west, and La Limousin on the east. The Angoumois, watered by the clear and sparkling charente.
" . . . She was the daughter and sole heiress of Adomar, count of Angouleme, himself the one surviving son of William IV Taillefer, count of the wealthy city and province of Angouleme in south-western France, straddling the valley of the Charente between Poitou and Gascony. In theory the counts of Angouleme were the vassals of the dukes of Aquitaine, brought within the Plantagenet sphere of influence following the marriage of Henry II to Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1152. In practice they were semi-autonomous rulers, only loosely tied into the feudal hierarchy." (King John: New Interpretations: 166)
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| Thibaut I of Navarre Pierre I of Brittany & Hugues X of Lusignan |
Her lover was:
Hugues X de Lusignan (1185-1249)
Lord of Lusignan 1219; Count of La Marche 1219; Count of Angouleme 1220.
Son of: Hugues IX de Lusignan & Mathilde d'Angouleme.
Husband of: Isabelle d'Angouleme, mar 122?
"Before she married King John . . . Isabella of Angouleme had been hoping to marry her lover, Hugh de Lusignan, in France She must have been quite relieved when John died, rather suddenly, sixteen years later. She was only only about thirty, so she went back to her home in Angouleme and married Hugh, who was still waiting for her. It was a happy marriage, and Isabella and Hugh had three sons and several daughters before 1244, when suddenly out of the blue, she was accused of plotting to poison the King of France." (Monarchs, Murders & Mistresses: A Calendar of Royal Days: 93)
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| Isabelle of France @Wikipedia |
(1295-1358)
Queen of England
1308
"Isabella was an enchanting child who would grow into 'a most elegant lady and a very beautiful woman.' It was conventional for chroniclers routinely to describe queens and highborn ladies as being fair in visage, yet their praise for Isabella's looks is so fulsome and unanimous that she must indeed have been beautiful. Edward II himself gave her the nickname 'Isabeau the Fair'; Walter of Guisborough, echoing Jean le Bell, calls her 'one of the fairest ladies in the world'; Froissart, 'the beautiful Isabella.' She was 'the fairest of the fair,' 'more beautiful than the rose,' and 'the beauty of beauties in the kingdom, if not all of Europe.'" (Queen Isabella: 23)
" . . . Her deputy fared poorly between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries, and well into the twentieth: in early 1590s the playwright Christopher Marlowe called her 'that unnatural queen, false Isabel', a 1757 poem by Thomas Gray was the first to apply the ridiculous 'she-wolf' nickname (which had been invented by Shakespeare for Henry VI's queen Margaret of Anjou) to her, and in 1958 exactly 600 years after her death, Isabella was stilled being called 'the most wicked of English queens'. The French nickname sometimes used for her, la Louve de France -- the title of a 1950s novel about her by Maurice Druon -- is simply the translation of the English word 'she-wolf' and has no historical basis whatsoever. (Although it is sometimes claimed nowadays that Edward II himself, or his favourite Hugh Despenser the Younger, called Isabella a 'she-wolf', this is not true; one fourteenth-century chronicler, Geoffrey le Baker, called her Jezebel, a play on her name, but otherwise no unpleasant nicknames for her are recorded until a few centuries after she died). An academic work of 1983 unkindly called Isabella a 'whore', and a non-fiction book published as late as 2003 depicts her as incredibly beautiful and desirable but also murderous, vicious and scheming, and claims without evidence that she 'had murder in her heart' towards her husband in 1326/27, called for his execution and was 'secretly delighted' when she heard of his death. Her contemporaries were mostly kinder. With the notable exception of Geoffrey le Baker in the 1350s, who was trying to promote Edward II as a saint and who detested Isabella, calling her an 'iron virago' as well as 'Jezebel', fourteenth-century chroniclers generally treated her well, and it is certainly not the case, as is sometimes claimed nowadays, that they called her a 'whore' or anything equally ugly and harsh because of her liaison with Roger Mortimer. Most fourteenth-century chroniclers seem uncertain whether Isabella even had an affair with Mortimer at all, and a few depict the two merely as political allies and call Mortimer Isabella's 'chief counsellor', which may be a more accurate portrayal of their association than the romanticised accounts so prevalent in modern writing. In the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries, writers have mostly been keen to write Isabella sympathetically and rescue her from the unfair calumnies heaped on her for so long -- an impulse to be applauded -- but in doing so have tended to go too far in the opposite direction. As a result, Isabella is depicted nowadays as a tragic, long-suffering victim of marital cruelty, impoverished and deprived of her children, who is miraculously transformed in 1326/27 into a strong, empowered feminist heroine bravely fighting to end the oppression of her husband's subjects and to get her children back. This is no more accurate than the old tendency to write her as an evil she-wolf." (Isabella of France: The Rebel Queen)
Queen Isabelle's lover was.
Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March (1287-1330)
Lover in 1325.
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1316
Joint Regent of England 1327-1330
Earl of March 1328
Husband of Joan de Geneville, 2nd Baroness Geneville, mar 1301, daughter of Sir Piers de Geneville of Trim Castle & Ludlow & Jeanne of Lusignan.
His wife Jeanne's personal & family background.
"Jeanne de Joinville, was the daughter of Sir Piers de Geneville and Joan of Lusignan. She inherited the estates of her grandparents, Geoffrey de Geneville, 1st Baron Geneville, and Maud de Lacy, Baroness Geneville. She was one of the wealthiest heiresses in the Welsh Marches and County Meath, Ireland. She was the wife of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, the de facto ruler of England from 1327 to 1330. She succeeded as suo jure 2nd Baroness Geneville on 21 October 1314 upon the death of her grandfather, Geoffrey de Geneville." (Wikipedia)
Roger de Mortimer's personal & family background.
"Roger Mortimer was born the eldest son of Lord Edmund Mortimer of Wigmore and Margaret de Fiennes on April 25, 1287. From the very beginning of his life, Roger’s prospects were extremely high. He was a great-great grandson of the legendary William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke (known to history as “the Marshal”), who served as regent of England during the opening years of the reign of Henry III and played a major role in bringing the First Barons’ War to an end. His paternal grandfather (another Roger) was one of the heroes of the Battle of Evesham during the Second Barons’ War, where he fought for the royalist army. By the time of Roger’s birth, his father Edmund had also set himself up in the steed of his great ancestors by taking part in the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the last native Prince of Wales, in late 1282. These connections cemented the expectations that the younger Roger would continue the solid connections to the English throne that his prestigious ancestors had helped to establish. Yet he was also a great-great grandson of the notorious Welsh ruler, Llywelyn ap Iorwith “the Great,” who had dedicated his life to causing trouble for whoever happened to be wearing the English crown. With ancestors such as these, it should come as no surprise that Roger would become conflicted as to where his loyalties lay during his later years." (Shakespeare & History)
Roger's physical appearance & personal qualities.
"Roger was tall, swarthy of complexion, and strongly built. He was one of the most outstanding military leaders of the period, tough, energetic, decisive, and versatile in his talents. Like most barons, he was arrogant, grasping, and ambitious, but he was also an excellent political strategist and a faithful servant of the Crown who was well respected by his peers. Clever, cultured, and literate, he took keen interest in his family's history and its alleged descent from Brutus, the mythical British King, and in the legends of King Arthur. He had refined tastes, loved fine clothes, lived in some luxury, and undertook major architectural works to transform his castles at Wigmore and Ludlow into veritable palaces. Typical of his caste, he also loved tournaments, paid lip service to the knightly code of chivalry, and amassed a considerable collection of weaponry." (Queen Isabella: Treachery, Adultery, and Murder in Medieval England: 43)
First encounter.
" . . . Isabella first saw Roger Mortimer when she was twelve. He attended her wedding at Boulogne in January 1308, and was one of the four bearers of the royal robes at her and Edward's coronation the following month. Whether they had had any personal contact before late 1325 is unknown, and Mortimer's feelings for the queen are difficult to determine. . . ." (Warner. Edward II: The Unconventional King)
Affair's beginnings.
"At some point after Isabella's refusal to return to England, Roger Mortimer came into her life. The first reliable evidence that they were allies or more comes from Edward II's proclamation of 8 February 1326, when he said that Isabella 'is adopting the counsel of the Mortimer, the king's notorious enemy and rebel'. Edward also wrote to Charles IV and Edward of Windsor on 18 March to complain that his wife 'draws to her and retains in her company of her counsel the Mortimer, the king's traitor and mortal enemy'. . . ."
Affair's benefits to Roger.
"Never had there been such prodigal peculation, such insatiable seizure of honors and lands as when Roger Mortimer, given almost absolute power by his royal mistress, began to gather in the fruit from the medlar trees of Westminster. Here are a few of the benefits he conferred on himself: Knighthoods for four of his sons the day of the king's coronation. The return of all of his confiscated estates and those of his uncle of Chirk. Granted the custody of Thomas Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, for the term of his minority. . . Obtained the lands in Glamorgan which had belonged to the wife of the younger Despenser. Was appointed justiciar of the diocese of Llandaff. Granted lands worth a thousand pounds a year which had belonged to the elder Despenser, including the castle of Denbigh. In Ireland given complete palatine rights in the liberty of Trim and in the counties of Meath and Uriel. Had transferred to him the castle of Montgomery and the Hundred of Chirbury. Allowed four hundred marks a year in addition to his full fee as justice in Wales. Two chantry priests were paid ten marks a year to say prayers for him. . . ." (The Three Edwards)
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| Catherine of Valois Queen of England |
Queen of England
1420-1437
Wife of:
1. Henry V of England.
1. Henry V of England.
2. Owen Tudor.
"Owen Tudor married Henry V's widow Catherine in secret but marriage was not recognised by the authorities, making their two children, Edmund and Jasper, illegitimate. Catherine died in childbirth in 1437 and Owen Tudor was imprisoned while their children were sent to Barking Abbey in Essex. They were raised by the abbess Katherine de la Pole, the sister of the king's favourite, William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk.
"Katherine brought the youngsters to the king's attention when he turned 21 in 1442 and he allowed them to be educated in court; he also released their father from prison. Then years later they were declared legitimate and recognised as the king's brothers. Edmund was created Earl of Richmond and Jasper was created Earl of Pembroke and they were both given large estates." (Treachery and Retribution: England's Dukes, Marquesses & Earls, 1066–1707)
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| Owen Tudor & Catherine of Valois @ BBC |
"If Catherine had been in love with Edmund Beaufort, it soon became obvious to those around her that she had started an affair with a Welshman, Owen Tudor. Tudor had been in the employ of King Henry and had then been in the service of the baby, King Henry VI. Catherine then appointed him Clerk of her Wardrobe. Those around her warned her of the folly of such an affair. She continued despite the warnings, removing herself from court life, she and Owen Tudor retreated to the countryside and in the 1430's place and date unknown, they married." (Intriguing History)
Catherine de Valois's lovers were:
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| Edmund Beaufort 2nd Duke of Somerset @Wikipedia |
1) Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset (1406-1455)
Lover in 1427?
English aristocrat
Husband of Eleanor de Beauchamp (1408-1467), mar 1431/33, daughter of Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick & Elizabeth de Berkeley.
"Fourth son of John Beaufort, the 1st Earl, Edmund was involved in the French Wars and the recapture of Harfleur, Knight of the Garter ('KG' hereafter) in 1436, Earl of Dorset 1442 and Marquess a year later. In 1444 Edmund succeeded his father as 4th Earl. After Suffolk's removal and murder, Edmund became leader of the Lancastrian faction at court. Handsome and urbane (he was rumoured to have had a clandestine affair with Queen Katherine in 1427) he was, nonetheless, totally unscrupulous. Edmund was killed at the First Battle of St. Albans on 22 May 1455." (Towton: The Battle of Palm Sunday Field 1461)
"In 1427 it is believed that Edmund Beaufort may have embarked on an affair with Catherine of Valois, the widow of Henry V. Evidence is sketchy, however the liaison prompted a parliamentary statute regulating the remarriage of queens of England. The historian G. L. Harriss surmised that it was possible that another of its consequences was Catherine's son Edmund Tudor and that Catherine, to avoid the penalties of breaking the statute of 1427–8, secretly married Owen Tudor. He wrote: "By its very nature the evidence for Edmund Tudor's parentage is less than conclusive, but such facts as can be assembled permit the agreeable possibility that Edmund 'Tudor' and Margaret Beaufort were first cousins and that the royal house of 'Tudor' sprang in fact from Beauforts on both sides.'" (Wikipedia)
"And yet in 1428, the Duke of Gloucester, heard rumours that Catherine intended to marry Edmund Beaufort, Earl of Somerset, a cousin of the late King. Such was the fear in Council that Parliament were persuaded to pass a law prohibiting any person from marrying the queen-dowager without the consent of the King and Council." (Intriguing History)
"When Henry V died there was no chance that his widow, a 21-year-old woman and sister to the rival claimant to the French throne, would be permitted to play any political role; nor was there any indication she wished to do so. Catherine was a devoted mother and gave no cause for concern until 1427, when she fell in love with the dashing Edmund Beaufort, six years her junior, who had been setting hearts aflutter ever since arriving at court. The second generation of Beauforts were an attractive brood. The hostage King James I of Scotland fell in love with Edmund's sister Joan. Dowager Queen Catherine was dame of honour at the wedding. . . So, even before falling for Edmund, Catherine de Valois was well acquainted with the Beauforts and would have known that Edmund's older brothr John, Earl of Somerset, had been taken prisoner after following his stepfather the Duke of Clarence to defeat at Bauge. Irrespective of Catherine's charms, Edmund must have regarded dalliance with the richest woman in England, who might influence the court to help ransom his brother, as practically a fraternal obligation, while the prospect of marriage was mouth-watering." (Battle Royal)
Welsh courtier.
"Following the death of Henry V in 1422, Owen -- by now a squire -- was employed as Keeper of the Queen's Wardrobe. Legend has it that he accidentally fell into the queen's lap during a drunken dance at court. The pair became lovers and secretly married in around 1429. The first of their four children, Edmund, was born a year later. Favoured by his step-brother, King Henry VI, Edmund was made the Earl of Richmond. His younger brother Jasper became the Earl of Pembroke and crucially helped his young nephew Henry VII escape to France from Tenby during the Wars of the Roses." (How Did Lowly Welshman Bed a Queen and Sire a Dynasty)
(1501-1536)
Queen of England
1536
Wife of Henry VIII of England.
"The marriage with Anne was scandalous in two senses. First, because it was believed to be based on lust, and, second, because the king had 'meddled' with both Anne and her sister, Mary, creating an affinity still stronger than that between himself and Catherine of Aragon, if she had indeed consummated her marriage with the king's older brother, Arthur." (Female Beauty Systems: 70)
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| Sir Francis Weston by Unknown artist |
"Sir Francis Weston, a 25-year-old Knight of the Order of the Bath, stood accused of having had a more long-term liaison with the Queen - beginning in the late spring of 1534 at Westminster, when the Queen was heavily pregnant, and continuing later in the summer at Greenwich. . . Again, in Weston's case, there were inconsistencies with the dates and the locations -- the Queen had been staying at Richmond Palace on one of the occasions when she and Weston were supposed to have slept together at Westminster and she had been at Hampton Court when they were alleged to have been havin gsex together at Greenwich." (Confessions of a Ci-Devant)
2. George Boleyn, 2nd Viscount Rochford. (1504-1436), her brother.
3. Sir Henry Norris (1482-1536)
English courtier
" . . . Professor E.W. Ives argues more persuasively for Norris having been born in about 1491 or 1492, making him almost exactly of an age with Henry VIII -- meaning that he would have been about 44 or 43 at the time he was arrested.
A discreet, level-headed man of proven integrity,' Norris had been in the King's service for almost three decades and he was the 'best-beloved of the King' before the events of 1536. A widower since his wife's death six years earlier and the father of three young children, at the time of his arrest Norris was on an annual income of about 150,000 pounds (2010 prices), and considering that his travel expenses, homes, clothes and food were all paid for by the Court, he was certainly a wealthy man. He was also a powerful one, with great influence over the King. As well as having official roles in Parliament, the Tower of London and the port of Southampton, Norris was also High Steward of the University of Oxford, Keeper of the King's Privy Purse, Master of the Hart Hounds and Hawks and Chamberlain of North Wales. He had also been a competitor for Thomas Cromwell's influence over the King for half-a-decade, so there can be no doubt that aside from his long-standing friendship with the Queen, this was one of the chief reasons why he was targeted in 1536." (Confessions of a Ci-Devant)
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| Henry Percy 6th Earl of Northumberland @Wikipedia |
4. Henry Percy, 6th Earl of Northumberland (1502-1537)
Lover in 1522.
"Sometime in 1521, Anne returned to England to arrange details of her marriage to thee heir of Ormonde. A year later she attended a masked ball at Queen Catherine's court. After her marriage plans to Ormonde fell through, she immediately began an affair with Henry Percy, also a rich eir, but the romance was aborted by Cardinal Wolsey, Henry's omnipotent chancellor, presumably because he had designs on Anne for himself, which could explain why Anne had developed such an impassioned hatred of him. During this time, Anne also had some sort of intimate relationship with Sir Thomas Wyatt, a married man, at the time separated from his wife." (Saint-Saens' Henry VIII: 24)
5. Mark Smeaton (1512-1536)
Royal musician
Groom of the Privy Chamber 1532.
"There are a number of undisputed facts relating to Anne's fall. On Sunday 30 April 1536 Mark Smeaton, a musician from the queen's household, was arrested; he was then interrogated at Cromwell's house in Stepney. On the Same evening the king postponed a trip with Anne to Calais, planned for 2 May. The next day, 1 May, Smeaton was moved to the Tower. Henry attended the May Day jousts at Greenwich but left abruptly on horseback with a small group of intimates. These included Sir Henry Norris, a personal body servant and one of his closest friends, whom he questioned throughout the journey. At dawn the next day Norris was taken to the Tower. Anne and her brother George, Lord Rochford, were also arrested." (History Extra)
6. Sir Thomas Wyatt.
English poet
7. William Brereton (1487-1536)
English courtier
Groom of the Privy Chamber to King Henry VIII.
" . . . Blaming Anne's promiscuity for the deformity, Henry ordered her and her five apparent lovers incarcerated in the Tower of London. . . The indictments accused Anne of witch-like, lecherous behavior, of enticing the five men with French kisses to perform sexual acts with her. The accused were her brother, George Boleyn, Lord Rochford, Sir Francis Weston, William Norris, William Brereton, and Mark Smeaton, all of whom were executed. No effort was made to ensure that she was with the men at the time and place stated in the indictments. For instance, they claimed she met Rochford on 5 December 1535 at Westminster when she was with Henry at Windsor. . . ." (Encyclopedia of Women in the Renaissance: Italy, France & England: 50)
8. William Norris.
(1523-1542)
1540-1541.
Lover in 1538-1539
" . . . Francis Dereham was a member of the Duke of Norfolk's household and a distant connection to the Howards, a handsome, dashing young gentleman of birth and substance and altogether a more attractive proposition than poor Henry Manox, who was ruthlessly discarded. Francis Dereham's face was soon familiar at Lambeth, and he became a regular member of that privileged group of gentlemen who could be sure of a welcome in the girls' dormitory after lights out." (Tudor Women: Queens & Commoners)
2. Henry Manox (1525-?)
Her music teacher
Lover around 1536-1538.
"Henry Manox was born in about 1525. He worked for the Duchess Agnes Howard who lived at Chesworth House near Horsham. He taught music and in 1536 he was accused of trying to seduce Catherine Howard who was around 12 years of age at the time. (1) Catherine later recalled 'at the flattering and fair persuasions of Manox being but a young girl I suffered him at sundry times to handle and touch the secret parts of my body which neither became me with honesty to permit nor him to require'. Six years later Manox confessed that he was attracted to Catherine and 'he felt more than was convenient' but swore that he never knew her "carnally". The relationship came to an end when the Duchess found the couple embracing. It has been reported that the Duchess struck Catherine as she blamed her for what had taken place. One of the servants later reported: 'She (the Duchess) gave... Catherine two or three blows and gave straight charge both to her and to Manox that they should never be alone together.'" (Spartacus Educational)
"The music tutor, Henry Manox, who taught the virginal Kathryn the virginals, also provided her training wheels in carnality. But even as she flirted with the lowly musician, Kathryn haughtily reminded him, 'I will never be naught with you, and able to marry me ye be not.'" (Carroll: 113)
"Katherine took her first chance when she was fourteen or so. She may not have possessed much in the way of intellectual equipment, but she was fully aware of her own developing body and of its effect on the opposite sex -- especially on one Henry Manox, who had recently come to Horsham to give the young ladies music lessons. Katherine Howard learned more from Henry Manox than how to strike graceful chords on the lute and virginals, and they were soon making assignations to meet in unfrequented corners, where Manox became familiar with the 'secret parts' of Mistress Katherine's body. The Duchess caught them at in on at least one occasion, but she didn't seem unduly disturbed, merely scolding the guilty pair and giving orders tha they were never to be left alone in future. In spite of this, the romance continued for a while, the young couple exchanging messages and tokens via sympathetic third parties -- a traffic which, of course, soon led to rumours of an engagement between them. Manox, in fact, was growing so confident of Katherine's affection that he boasted openly that she had promised him her maidenhead, 'though it be painful to her'. This piece of indiscretion prompted a stern warning from Mary Lassells, the Duchess's chamberer, who told him plainly that he was asking for trouble. The Hoards might take a tolerant view a bit of youthful kissing and fumbling, but they would certainly not permit one of their kinswomen to tie herself up to a mere music teacher, and if Manox persisted, he would find himself undone." (Tudor Women: Queens and Commoners)
3. Thomas Culpeper.
" . . . Catherine had a number of romances, which, though fairly well-known at the time, were kept from Henry VIII. Her famous relationship was with Thomas Culpepper, a member of Henry VIII's privy chamber. This romance would have repercussions since Catherine and Culpeper would rekindle it during her marriage to Henry VIII... Catherine, a young woman in her late teens or late twenties, turned to her former mover, Thomas Culpepper, for comfort. While touring northern England with Henry VIII, Catherine and Thomas carried on a fairly public love affair. When Henry learned of Catherine's conduct both before and during their marriage, he had her former and current lovers arrested and tortured in the Tower of London. Catherine was found guilty of adultery and treason. She was executed on 13 February 1542." (Robin: 185)
(1542-1587)
Queen of Scotland
1542-1567
Wife of: Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1545-1567), King Consort of Scots, mar 1565.
Soon of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox and Lady Margaret Douglas.
Outstandingly good looking.
"All accounts agree that Darnley was outstandingly good looking. According to Castelnau, it was 'not possible to see a more beautiful prince,' while Buchanan called Darnley 'the most handsome of our time.' He was certainly tall; analysis of a femur alleged on good grounds to be his (now in the museum of the Royal College of Physicians) suggests that his height was between 6'1" and 6'3", which was exceptional in an age in which the average man's height was at most 5'6", and made him a fitting match for the Queen of Scots, who was herself about six feet tall. Darnell had a slim, strong athletic physique honed by the sports in which he excelled. He had cropped fair curly hair and a clean-shaven and handsome, if rather effeminate, face; later, he grew a short bear and moustache." (Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley: 62)
A young & handsome royal suitor.
"When Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, appeared at court in Edinburgh it seemed that Mary had met her match. Darnley was young and handsome. He shared a passion for hunting, dance and music with Mary, Darnley and Mary were both grandchildren of Margaret Tudor and he belonged to an ambitious family of English nobles. Importantly, a marriage to Darnley would strengthen Mary's claim, and their children's claim, to the English throne." (Education Scotland)
Soon of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox and Lady Margaret Douglas.
Outstandingly good looking.
"All accounts agree that Darnley was outstandingly good looking. According to Castelnau, it was 'not possible to see a more beautiful prince,' while Buchanan called Darnley 'the most handsome of our time.' He was certainly tall; analysis of a femur alleged on good grounds to be his (now in the museum of the Royal College of Physicians) suggests that his height was between 6'1" and 6'3", which was exceptional in an age in which the average man's height was at most 5'6", and made him a fitting match for the Queen of Scots, who was herself about six feet tall. Darnell had a slim, strong athletic physique honed by the sports in which he excelled. He had cropped fair curly hair and a clean-shaven and handsome, if rather effeminate, face; later, he grew a short bear and moustache." (Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley: 62)
A young & handsome royal suitor.
"When Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, appeared at court in Edinburgh it seemed that Mary had met her match. Darnley was young and handsome. He shared a passion for hunting, dance and music with Mary, Darnley and Mary were both grandchildren of Margaret Tudor and he belonged to an ambitious family of English nobles. Importantly, a marriage to Darnley would strengthen Mary's claim, and their children's claim, to the English throne." (Education Scotland)
Darnley's personal appearance & personal qualities.
"It was not only, however, his impeccable royal lineage that made him attractive to Mary; she had fallen in love. Sir Walter Scott gives us a realistic portrait of the object of Mary's affection: 'Young Darnley was remarkably tall and handsome, perfect in all external and showy accomplishments, but unhappily destitute of sagacity, prudence, steadiness of character, and exhibiting only doubtful courage, though extremely violent in his passions.' Time would prove to Mary that Darnley's beauty and courtly accomplishments were only skin deep. At the core he was, in Magnusson's words, 'shallow, vain, weak, indolent, selfish, arrogant, vindictive and irremediably spoiled.' In addition, he was a Lennox, a family with countless enemies both in Scotland and England. . . Mary wed Darnley in July 1565. But, as predicted, the bridegroom's dissolute lifestyle soon angered her, causing her, of course, to second guess her decision. Most nights he roamed the streets of Edinburgh with low-life companions in search of women. He failed to participate in the business of the royal court." (British Heritage)
"Young Darnley was remarkably tall and handsome, perfect in all external and showy accomplishments, but unhappily destitute of sagacity, prudence, steadiness of character, and exhibiting only doubtful courage, though extremely violent in his passions. Had this young man possessed a very moderate portion of sense, or even of gratitude, we might have had a different story to tell of Mary's reign---as it was, you will hear a very melancholy one. Mary had the misfortune to look upon this young nobleman with partiality, and was the more willing to gratify her own inclinations in his favour, that she longed to put an end to the intrigues by which Queen Elizabeth had endeavoured to imposed upon her, and prevent her marriage. . . ." (The History of Scotland, Vol 1: 277)
Accomplished in aristocratic pursuits.
"Darnley was accomplished in all the traditional aristocratic pursuits. He was a gifted late player, a good dancer, a poet and a man of letters who was proficient in Latin and French, and a keen and expert sportsman, skilled at swordplay, shooting, horsemanship, hunting, Hawking, tennis, golf and pell-mell (croquet). He had a certain charm, was well versed in courtly manners, and was described by Randolph as 'a fair, jolly young man.' He could speak and write well, and was bountiful and liberal enough.' Indeed, he seemed 'an amiable youth,' and his courtesy and good looks invariably made a favourable impression on those who met him." (Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley: 63)
Queen Mary’s Love Triangle with David Rizzio and Lord Darnley.
"In Mary Queen of Scots, the titular ruler has a close relationship with her male secretary David Rizzio. Rizzio has a sexual encounter with Mary’s second husband, Lord Darnley. And, when Queen Mary is pregnant with Lord Darnley’s child, the monarch is forced to watch while Darnley and rebels stab Rizzio to death—after it is claimed Rizzio impregnated the queen. As outrageous as this story line seems, it is very much based in history. Rizzio was Northern Italian, and had been brought up in courts in France,” explained Guy. “The vogue in France, among young hedonistic courtiers, was essentially that they were bisexual. And they were looking back to ancient Greece and Rome . . . the idea of men and sexuality then was very different from what it is now. Straight and gay were not so clearly defined in those days. It was not frowned on as much . . . and Mary was also a very tolerant person.” (Mary Queen of Scots: The Tragic True Story of Royal Cousins Separated by Scheming Men)
Mary's lovers were:
1) David Rizzio (1533-1566).
Italian courtier.
"Less than a year after the wedding, Darnley, unhinged by immature jealousy, became involved int he murder of David Rizzio, his wife's private secretary. Rizzio had come to Scotland from Italy some years previously on a diplomatic mission but remained at the Scottish court as a lute player, singer, and subsequently, as Mary's assistant. The more outraged Mary became over her husband's stupidity and lewd behaviour, the more she looked to Rizzio for consolation. At the time she and Rizzio were close, many Scottish Protestant lords were discontent with Mary's rule. Some of the nobles claimed that Rizzio was a secret agent of the Pope and had usurped their proper places beside the Queen. They easily cajoled the gullible Darnley into believing that Mary and Rizzio were sexual partners, an accusation that historians have found implausible. (At the time, Mary was six months pregnant with Darnley's child.) They persuaded him to take part in a plot to murder the Italian." (British Heritage)
"Darnley, in the mean time, endeavouring to strengthen the interest which he had acquired in the Queen's affections, had recourse to the friendship of a man, of low rank, indeed, but who was understood to possess particular influence over the mind of Mary. This was an Italian of humble origin, called David Rizzio, who had been promoted from being a menial in the Queen's family, to the confidential office of French secretary. His talents for music gave him frequent admissions to Mary's presence, as she delighted in that art; and his address, and arts of insinuation , gained him a considerable influence over her mind. It was almost necessary that the Queen should have near her person some confidential officer, skilled at once in languages and in business, through whom she might communicated with foreign states, and with her friends in France in particular. No such agent was likely to be found in Scotland, unless she had chosen a Catholic priest, which would have given more offence to her Protestant subjects, than even the employment of a man like Rizzio. Still the elevation of this person, a stranger, a Catholic, and a man of mean origin, to the rank of minister of the crown---and, yet more, the personal familiarity to which the Queen condescended to admit him, and the airs of important which this low-born foreigner pretended to assume, became the subject of offence to the proud Scottish nobles, and of vulgar scandal among the common people." (The History of Scotland, Vol 1: 277)
2) Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley (1545-1567)
Earl of Ross, Duke of Albany.
Son of: Matthew Stewart, Earl of Lennox & Lady Margaret Douglas.
"Although Mary had doubtless a short infatuation for Darnley, the union was mainly due to political motives, and in view of the characters of bride and bridegroom it is not surprising that trouble soon arose between them. Contrary to his expectations Darnley did not receive the crown matrimonial, and his foolish and haughty behaviour, his vicious habits, and his boisterous companions did not improve matters. He was on bad terms with the regent Murray and other powerful nobles, who disliked the marriage, and were intriguing with Elizabeth. . . Unable to take any serious part in affairs of state, Darnley soon became estranged from his wife. He believed that Mary's relations with David Rizzio injured him as a husband, and was easily persuaded to assent to the murder of the Italian, a crime in which took part. . . ." (Luminarium Encyclopedia Project)
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| James Hepburn 4th Earl of Bothwell |
3) James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell (1534-1578).
Scottish nobleman & royal lover.
1st Duke of Orkney
4th Earl of Bothwell 1556
Lord Halles 1556
Master of Bothwell 1534.
Hereditary Lord High Admiral of Scotland.
Son of: Patrick Bothwell, 3rd Earl of Bothwell & Agnes Sinclair, mar 1534, div 1543,daughter of Henry, 3rd Lord Sinclair.
Husband of:
1. Jean Gordon, mar 1566, div 1567.
2. Mary, Queen of Scots, mar 1567
3. Anna Throndsen
Personal & family background.
Personal & family background.
" . . . James was the son of Patrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl of Bothwell and Agnes Sinclair. His parents had divorced, after Patrick had ambitions to marry Marie of Guise, although she turned him down. Yet he remained unfailingly loyal to her, as was his son, who also supported her daughter, Mary Queen of Scots." (Mary Queen of scots.net)
Spouses & children.
" . . . There were several relationships and one marriage in which he participated without clearly dissolving them, before he took up with Mary. One was with Anna Tronds, a Norwegian noblewoman, daughter of a famous Norwegian Admiral. He met her on a trip to Copenhagen where her father was serving as Danish Royal Consul. He traveled with her to Flanders where he jilted her after taking all her money." (Some Royal Bastards with Magna Carta Roots)
" . . . There were several relationships and one marriage in which he participated without clearly dissolving them, before he took up with Mary. One was with Anna Tronds, a Norwegian noblewoman, daughter of a famous Norwegian Admiral. He met her on a trip to Copenhagen where her father was serving as Danish Royal Consul. He traveled with her to Flanders where he jilted her after taking all her money." (Some Royal Bastards with Magna Carta Roots)
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James Hepburn 4th Earl of Bothwell |
Physical appearance & personal qualities.
" . . . One of them, broad of shoulders, stout of limb, was a young Scotsman of five-and-twenty, whose characteristic was strength rather than beauty. Stubborn red hair, cropped close, covered his massive head, and a great warlike beak of a nose overshadowed a mouth of enormous width and a heavy jaw. But yet James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, was no boor. He had been reared at the French court, and was fully conversant with all the graces of his time; his hands and feet were fine and aristocratic, his bearing was gallant; and though violent passion, overbearing resistance, marred his elegance, the magnetic force of him dominated the love of many women. . . ." (The Love Affairs of Mary, Queen of Scots: 118)
Earl of Bothwell, a ladies' man.
" . . . One of them, broad of shoulders, stout of limb, was a young Scotsman of five-and-twenty, whose characteristic was strength rather than beauty. Stubborn red hair, cropped close, covered his massive head, and a great warlike beak of a nose overshadowed a mouth of enormous width and a heavy jaw. But yet James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, was no boor. He had been reared at the French court, and was fully conversant with all the graces of his time; his hands and feet were fine and aristocratic, his bearing was gallant; and though violent passion, overbearing resistance, marred his elegance, the magnetic force of him dominated the love of many women. . . ." (The Love Affairs of Mary, Queen of Scots: 118)
Earl of Bothwell, a ladies' man.
"James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell was a ladies' man, powerfully attractive to women; he had a string of mistresses, and was noted as an able and swash-buckling soldier. He was a person of strong language and sexual appetite, although by repute he was not averse to homosexual relationships and enjoyed anal sex. He was well-educated at Spynie under his promiscuous kinsman, Patrick Hepburn, Bishop of Moray . . . ." (Mary Queen of scots.net)
Attitude towards women.
". . . Although he had his marriage to Lady Jean Gordon annulled in order to marry Mary, Bothwell seemed to keep the relationship going, assuring Jean that Mary was just his concubine and that she remained his only wife. Further, Bothwell's attitude towards women was notorious, from the blacksmith's daughter, Bessi Crawford who he seduced in a corner of the kitchen, Alison Craik, allegedly Arran's mistress, who he attempted to rape to take revenge on his enemy Arran, the distraught Anna Throndsen who he dumped after promising to marry her, to Janet Beaton, aunt of Mary Beaton one of the four Maries, a woman old enough to be his mother. . . . " (Marie Stuart)
Benefits: "Mary's infatuation for Bothwell was boundless. the faithful Mar was deprived of the keepership of Edinburgh Castle in favour of a creature of the Queen's lover. The castle of Blackness and the Inch were surrendered to Bothwell, who also obtained the superiorship of Leith, which ensured him, if necessary, a retreat by sea. Jewels, Church embroideries, splendid furs, formerly belonging to her mother; nay even poor Darnley's finest garments, were made over by Mary to her lover...." (Hume, 2005, p. 373)
"James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell was a ladies' man, powerfully attractive to women; he had a string of mistresses, and was noted as an able and swash-buckling soldier. He was a person of strong language and sexual appetite, although by repute he was not averse to homosexual relationships and enjoyed anal sex. He was well-educated at Spynie under his promiscuous kinsman, Patrick Hepburn, Bishop of Moray, but later attended university in Paris, where he became fluent in French. He studied Latin and Greek, but his principal interests were mathematics, military strategy and chivalry. Unlike his father, he was a Reformer, perhaps because Know's family had been Hepburn dependents." (Mary Queen of Scots)
". . . Although he had his marriage to Lady Jean Gordon annulled in order to marry Mary, Bothwell seemed to keep the relationship going, assuring Jean that Mary was just his concubine and that she remained his only wife. Further, Bothwell's attitude towards women was notorious, from the blacksmith's daughter, Bessi Crawford who he seduced in a corner of the kitchen, Alison Craik, allegedly Arran's mistress, who he attempted to rape to take revenge on his enemy Arran, the distraught Anna Throndsen who he dumped after promising to marry her, to Janet Beaton, aunt of Mary Beaton one of the four Maries, a woman old enough to be his mother. . . . " (Marie Stuart)
Benefits: "Mary's infatuation for Bothwell was boundless. the faithful Mar was deprived of the keepership of Edinburgh Castle in favour of a creature of the Queen's lover. The castle of Blackness and the Inch were surrendered to Bothwell, who also obtained the superiorship of Leith, which ensured him, if necessary, a retreat by sea. Jewels, Church embroideries, splendid furs, formerly belonging to her mother; nay even poor Darnley's finest garments, were made over by Mary to her lover...." (Hume, 2005, p. 373)
"James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell was a ladies' man, powerfully attractive to women; he had a string of mistresses, and was noted as an able and swash-buckling soldier. He was a person of strong language and sexual appetite, although by repute he was not averse to homosexual relationships and enjoyed anal sex. He was well-educated at Spynie under his promiscuous kinsman, Patrick Hepburn, Bishop of Moray, but later attended university in Paris, where he became fluent in French. He studied Latin and Greek, but his principal interests were mathematics, military strategy and chivalry. Unlike his father, he was a Reformer, perhaps because Know's family had been Hepburn dependents." (Mary Queen of Scots)
"Elizabeth I was said to fear him as the one man whose allegiance she could never buy. At one point he was the only Scottish nobleman not on her payroll. And after his death, the mention of his name could still reduce her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, to tears. Now a new book claims that history has much maligned James Hepburn, the 4th Earl of Bothwell (1534-1578). It argues that he was in fact another Braveheart who deserves a place alongside Celtic heroes such as Robert the Bruce and William Wallace. And, spurred on by the prospect of a full and glorious rehabilitation for the 16th century Scot who died a horrible death in exile in denmark, one of his descendants is campaigning to repatriate his body." (The Guardian)
"With her on the galleys were three of her uncles, the Duke d'Aumale, the Grand Prior of St. John, and the Marquis d'Elbeuf. The four maids of honour who had been her companions from infancy, the four Maries, were also near her, and a crowd of French and Scottish noble ladies and gentlemen, who were willing to brave the risks of such a voyage for her sake. Amongst them were two men, who perhaps at the time but little attracted her attention, but who nevertheless were in the dim future to sway her fate and die miserably for love or lust for her. One of them, broad of shoulders, stout of limb, was a young Scotsman of five-and-twenty, whose characteristic was strength rather than beauty. Stubborn red hair, cropped close, covered his massive head, and a great warlike beak of a nose overshadowed a mouth of enormous width and a heavy jaw. But yet James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, was no boor. He had been reared at the French court, and was fully conversant with all the graces of his time; his hands and feet were fine and aristocratic, his bearing was gallant; and though violent passion, overbearing resistance, marred his elegance, the magnetic force of him dominated the love of many women. . . ." (The Love Affairs of Mary, Queen of Scots: 118)
James Hepburn's other lovers were:
1) Alison Craik.
" . . . The truth is that Arran was half-mad, but before he could be brought under control, there was an ugly incident involving one of Mary's younger Guise uncles, the Marquis of Elbeuf, her half-brother Lord John Stewart and the unruly James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell. These three young bloods forced their way into an Edinburgh merchant's house in pursuit of Alison Craik, a 'good, handsome wench,' allegedly Arran's mistress. . . ." (Mary Queen of Scots: In My End is My Beginning: n.p.)
"Queen Mary of Scots had arrived from France at a time when the long-running feud between James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, and the Hamiltons, principally that Earl of Arran, took a new twist. It was an open secret that Alison Craik was, or had been, Arran's mistress. She lived with her stepfather, an Edinburgh merchant, and one night three masked men visited their household. Bothwell was in the lead. He was accompanied by two of the queen's kinsmen -- her half-brother Lord John Stewart (one of the nine children that James V sired out of wedlock) and her Guise uncle, Rene of Elbeuf. They gained entry to the house and gang-raped Alison -- her ordeal being Arran's insult. Not content with this, next night the three returned. This time, however, the household was ready for them. The uproar was enough to convince Lord John that discretion was the better part of ardour, but Bothwell and Elbeuf forced their way in and raped Alison a second time. . . ." (Union of Crowns: The Forging of Europe's Most Independent State: n.p.)
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James Hepburn 4th Earl of Bothwell @ BBC |
1) Alison Craik.
" . . . The truth is that Arran was half-mad, but before he could be brought under control, there was an ugly incident involving one of Mary's younger Guise uncles, the Marquis of Elbeuf, her half-brother Lord John Stewart and the unruly James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell. These three young bloods forced their way into an Edinburgh merchant's house in pursuit of Alison Craik, a 'good, handsome wench,' allegedly Arran's mistress. . . ." (Mary Queen of Scots: In My End is My Beginning: n.p.)
"Queen Mary of Scots had arrived from France at a time when the long-running feud between James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, and the Hamiltons, principally that Earl of Arran, took a new twist. It was an open secret that Alison Craik was, or had been, Arran's mistress. She lived with her stepfather, an Edinburgh merchant, and one night three masked men visited their household. Bothwell was in the lead. He was accompanied by two of the queen's kinsmen -- her half-brother Lord John Stewart (one of the nine children that James V sired out of wedlock) and her Guise uncle, Rene of Elbeuf. They gained entry to the house and gang-raped Alison -- her ordeal being Arran's insult. Not content with this, next night the three returned. This time, however, the household was ready for them. The uproar was enough to convince Lord John that discretion was the better part of ardour, but Bothwell and Elbeuf forced their way in and raped Alison a second time. . . ." (Union of Crowns: The Forging of Europe's Most Independent State: n.p.)
2) Anna Throndsen.
"Bothwell learned of the Queen Regent's demise while in Denmark and decided to lie low. He had been graciously received by the King and entered into a misalliance with Anna, daughter of a Norwegian nobleman, Christopher Throndsen, an admiral in the Danish navy. He seduced her with a promise of marriage, and she sold her jewellery (sic) to finance their travel to Flanders. . . ." (Stedall, 2012, p. 115)
3) Bessie Crawford.
4) Janet Beaton, Lady of Branxholme & Buccleuch (1519-1569)
Scottish aristocrat
Lover in 1558
5) Margaret Douglas (d.1640)
She was wife of Sir Walter Scott of Buccleuch, was the daughter of the Earl of Angus, and cousin of Morton. Like her sister Lady Reres, she had been one of the many mistresses of Bothwell, and it was by her that the Earl had been especially recommended to the notice of Mary Stuart. She does not appear to have been a very modest lady. Sir William Drury, writing to Cecil, said: 'I dare not deliver unto your honour the Lady Buccleuch's speech, yea openly, of her telling the cause that she bred his greatness with the Queen by, nor, of her speech to the Queen, nor of his insatiateness towards women.' . . . . " (History of England from the Fall of Wolsey to the Defeat of the Defeat of the Spanish Armada, Vol 9: 7)
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